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New principals in BUSD

This post is just to help get information out quickly, because many in the community are wondering who the principals will be at a number of BUSD schools. The following is from the District’s HR department.

Hazelle Fortich, Principal, Cragmont

Ms. Hazelle Fortich has deep roots in our district community. She has served as Coordinator for Early Childhood Program, summer school principal, interim principal at Washington, literacy coach at Washington, after school teacher at LeConte, and teacher at Malcolm X.One of her references states, “She lives and works in Berkeley; and is a committed parent, teacher and community member. Those experiences mean that she will bring the importance of family and community to any school district. As a parent, she knows the value of strong ties to families and the value of fostering all forms of diversity in our schools.”

Sonya Martin, Principal, Jefferson

For the past three years, Sonya has served as Vice-Principal at Willard. She most recently served as interim principal at Malcolm X. Prior to that, she was a teacher on special assignment in our Evaluation and Assessment Department, a teacher at Willard and Longfellow, and summer school principal. She began her teaching career in Oakland Unified School District where she worked from 1992 to 2002 as a full inclusion teacher. One of Sonya’s colleagues describes her as, “intelligent, hardworking, dedicated, professional and committed to issues of equity in education.”

René Molina, Principal, BAM

For the past four years, René has been the principal of Madrone Elementary School in Santa Rosa. Prior to that he worked as assistant principal at the elementary and middle school level in Pittsburg. He received a master’s degree in education from University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts, sciences and psychology from San Diego State University. A reference shares that Rene is an intelligent, hardworking and compassionate administrator who is able to analyze situations quickly and thoughtfully, is willing to do whatever it takes to get a job done, does an excellent job of listening, and cares deeply about the success of all students.

Marcos García, Principal, Longfellow

Marcos has served as an elementary principal and social studies teacher in West Contra Costa, and as a middle and high school teacher in Emeryville and Los Angeles. He received a master’s degree in educational leadership through Principal Leadership Institute at the University of California at Berkley and a bachelor’s degree in political science from UCLA. One of his supervisors affirms that Marcos’s “level of urgency, expected rigor and support ensured that the students were well-prepared for academic and career success. His commitment to equity for underserved students, and his resolve to close the exposure and achievement gap have driven his work and led to many accomplishments.”